Physical InactivityNCT05669378
A Good Start Matters Intervention Study
A study testing Appetite to Play + in people with Physical Inactivity and Motor Activity, run by University of British Columbia at 1 site in Canada.
Trial summary
The BC government and partners developed Active Play Standards and a capacity-building strategy to help childcare centers implement the Standards. We have developed an intervention to supplement the governmental capacity-building strategies. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 30 months and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Physical Inactivity, Motor Activity
- What is being tested?
- Appetite to Play +
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 52 participants
- Where
- 1 siteCanada
- Study dates
- 25 Oct 2023to 30 Sep 2025
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 30 months and older
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Located in the Metro Vancouver region
- Provides care to at least 10 children older than 2 1/2 years and younger than 6 years
- Childcare program that is longer than 4 hours each day
- children must attend a childcare that has volunteered to participate in the study
- Child must be older than 2 1/2 years and younger than 6 years of age
- Inclusion Criteria for managers and staff childcare centers:
Show all 9Show fewer
- Managers at licensed BC childcare facilities, working full time (at least 3 full days per week) in a facility for children aged 2½ to 6 years, defined as an Executive Director, supervisor, or program manager. Aged 19 years or older.
- OR
- Childcare staff at licensed BC childcare facilities, working full time (at least 3 full days per week), defined as Early Childhood Educator, instructor, or staff that cares for 2½ to 6-year-old children. Aged 19 years or older.
Who cannot join
- Located outside Metro Vancouver region
- Facilities caring only for children under 2 1/2 years old or older than 6 years
- Family or in-home multi-age childcare
- Exclusion Criteria for managers and staff childcare centers:
- Do not care or supervise 2 ½ to 6 years old children
- Work less than 3 full days per week
- Administrative assistant/office manager
- Younger than 19 years of age
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Canada1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
BC Children's Hospital Research Institute
Vancouver, British Columbia, V6H 3V4
Olivia De-Jongh González, PhD, 604-875-2000 ext. 6393, Olivia.DjGonzalez@bcchr.ca
About this study
Official title: A Good Start Matters: Do Supportive Childcare Centre Environments, Policies and Practices Enhance Physical Activity?
The BC government and partners developed Active Play Standards and a capacity-building strategy to help childcare centers implement the Standards. We have developed an intervention to supplement the governmental capacity-building strategies. The intervention is comprised of implementation support strategies targeted at childcare providers in BC that will aid with the sustainment of Active Play best practices at their facilities. The impact of the intervention will be assessed by measuring its impact on a) change in practices with respect to Active Play; and b) improving child-level outcomes (children's physical activity, sedentary behavior, and motor skill competencies). The findings will inform future policies and enhance our understanding of how policy action supported by communication, capacity-building, and sustainment strategies influence the environment of childcare centres.
Read the detailed description
The Director of Licensing Standard of Practice - Active Play (Active Play Standard), mandates the provision of Active Play opportunities (amount of time spent outdoor, amount of physical activity, provision of fundamental skills) in licensed childcare centers in British Columbia, Canada. To support the implementation of this standard, the province released a capacity-building intervention, called Appetite to Play (ATP). Appetite to Play provides training and support to childcare providers in enhancing physical activity, physical literacy, and healthy eating environments in their facilities. To encourage the sustained use of ATP and aid childcare facilities in maintaining their adherence to the Active Play Standard, we have developed an intervention called, Appetite to Play +, targeted at facility managers and staff. The intervention builds upon ATP and is considered advanced training for childhood educators. The intervention involves the implementation of support strategies focused on integrating Active Play and fundamental movement skills into scheduling, curriculum planning, and creating a supportive environment for Active Play and healthy eating in childcare facilities.
- Conditions
- Physical Inactivity, Motor Activity
- Being tested
- Appetite to Play +
- Medical subject headings
- Sedentary Behavior, Motor Activity
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Appetite to Play +Behavioural
In 2017 the province of BC enacted a provincial standard for physical activity, formally titled the Director of Licensing Standard of Practice - Active Play (Active Play Standards) that licensed childcare centers are required to adhere to. Along with this, a provincial capacity-building intervention (Appetite to Play) was released to provide training and education to early years providers working in the province and support the implementation of the Active Play Standards. The intervention, Appetite to Play +, will provide advanced training to early year educators on the Appetite to Play activities and resources. The intervention will include workshops and training on physical literacy, fundamental movement skills, and creating a supportive environment to sustain Active Play practices. As part of the intervention, managers will also be provided with resources to aid them with the integration of Active Play into their curriculums and schedules.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Intervention group | Experimental | The experimental group will receive the Appetite to Play + intervention which is a capacity-building intervention that support childcare providers in implementing the best practices for active play. It includes a 3 e-learning online modules and then the are supported with weekly . bi-weekly emails. Receives: Behavioral: Appetite to Play + |
| Standard of care waitlist control | Other | The standard of care waitlist control group will receive the intervention at 3-months post-randomization. The standard of care group has access to the Appetite to Play materials which are available to everyone. The site includes resources that childcare providers can use. Receives: Behavioral: Appetite to Play + |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Change in practices related to active play (AP) and fundamental movement skills (FMS)
Change in AP and FMS practices will examine child engagement in AP and FMS activities at the facility (e.g., time spent in AP, FMS, and outdoor activities, adherence to best practices). Assessment through observed practices using the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation (EPAO) tool, and through self-reported practices based on questions developed by the Early Years Survey and the EPAO as a Self-Report instrument (EPAO-SR).
Measured: Two time points -baseline and 3-month post intervention
Fundamental movement skills (child outcomes)
Children's FMS will be assessed with the validated Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD-3 a norm-referenced tool for assessing 13 gross motor skills). The measure takes 15-20 min per child to administer and provides standardized and percentile composite scores for the locomotor, object control, and gross motor quotient (GMQ) composites.
Measured: Two time points -baseline and 3-month post intervention
Secondary outcomes (2)
Characteristics of childcare settings
Assessment of organizational processes, structural support, and processing supporting implementation of Active Play policies as measured by the Early Years Survey and the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation as a Self-Report tool (EPAO-SR), including actions to prioritize AP and changes in the environment to support AP and FMS.
Measured: Three time points -baseline and 3-month, and 6-month post intervention
Characteristics of providers
Assessment of staff and manager's knowledge and skills, self-efficacy, and commitment to changes facility practices to implement Active Play standards, as measured by the Early Years Survey and the EPAO-SR.
Measured: Three time points -baseline and 3-month, and 6-month post intervention
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted30 Dec 2022
- Study start25 Oct 2023
- Primary completion30 Sep 2025 (estimated)
- Study completion30 Sep 2025 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (1)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Physical InactivityStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by University of British ColumbiaThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Crossover
- Model description
- To test the efficacy of ATP+, we will conduct a randomized control trial with 52 facilities - where 26 facilities will be randomized to receive the intervention and while the remaining facilities will receive the standard of care as a waitlist control group and will receive the intervention at 3-month post randomization.
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 52 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of British Columbia
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Louise Masse, University of British Columbia
- Investigators
- Louise C Masse, PhD, Principal investigator, University of British Columbia
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05669378
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- H18-01434
- Status last verified
- Apr 2025
- First submitted
- 20 Dec 2022
- Last updated
- 16 Apr 2025
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
Publications
Masse LC, Wright C, Buckler EJ, De-Jongh Gonzalez O, Wolfenden L, Faulkner G, Carson V, Temple V, Brussoni M, Fakih S, Sauve K, Edache I, Naylor PJ. Facility-level implementation strategies in early childhood education and care to enhance adherence to a provincial physical activity standard: Protocol for the Good Start Matters ATP+ randomised controlled trial. PLoS One. 2025 Aug 12;20(8):e0329276. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0329276. eCollection 2025.
PubMed 40794716
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 16 Apr 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- A Good Start Matters: Do Supportive Childcare Centre Environments, Policies and Practices Enhance Physical Activity?
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05669378
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- H18-01434
- Conditions
- Physical Inactivity, Motor Activity
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 52 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of British ColumbiaUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
- Study start
- 25 Oct 2023 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 30 Sep 2025 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 30 Sep 2025 (estimated)
- First posted
- 30 Dec 2022 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The BC government and partners developed Active Play Standards and a capacity-building strategy to help childcare centers implement the Standards. We have developed an intervention to supplement the governmental capacity-building strategies. The intervention is comprised of implementation support strategies targeted at childcare providers in BC that will aid with the sustainment of Active Play best practices at their facilities. The impact of the intervention will be assessed by measuring its impact on a) change in practices with respect to Active Play; and b) improving child-level outcomes (children's physical activity, sedentary behavior, and motor skill competencies). The findings will inform future policies and enhance our understanding of how policy action supported by communication, capacity-building, and sustainment strategies influence the environment of childcare centres.
Detailed description
The Director of Licensing Standard of Practice - Active Play (Active Play Standard), mandates the provision of Active Play opportunities (amount of time spent outdoor, amount of physical activity, provision of fundamental skills) in licensed childcare centers in British Columbia, Canada. To support the implementation of this standard, the province released a capacity-building intervention, called Appetite to Play (ATP). Appetite to Play provides training and support to childcare providers in enhancing physical activity, physical literacy, and healthy eating environments in their facilities. To encourage the sustained use of ATP and aid childcare facilities in maintaining their adherence to the Active Play Standard, we have developed an intervention called, Appetite to Play +, targeted at facility managers and staff. The intervention builds upon ATP and is considered advanced training for childhood educators. The intervention involves the implementation of support strategies focused on integrating Active Play and fundamental movement skills into scheduling, curriculum planning, and creating a supportive environment for Active Play and healthy eating in childcare facilities.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Crossover
- Masking
- Single blind (outcomes assessor)
- Number of arms
- 2
- Model description
- To test the efficacy of ATP+, we will conduct a randomized control trial with 52 facilities - where 26 facilities will be randomized to receive the intervention and while the remaining facilities will receive the standard of care as a waitlist control group and will receive the intervention at 3-month post randomization.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Intervention group | Experimental | Behavioral: Appetite to Play +The experimental group will receive the Appetite to Play + intervention which is a capacity-building intervention that support childcare providers in implementing the best practices for active play. It includes a 3 e-learning online modules and then the are supported with weekly . bi-weekly emails. |
| Standard of care waitlist control | Other | Behavioral: Appetite to Play +The standard of care waitlist control group will receive the intervention at 3-months post-randomization. The standard of care group has access to the Appetite to Play materials which are available to everyone. The site includes resources that childcare providers can use. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 30 months and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (9 listed)
- Located in the Metro Vancouver region
- Provides care to at least 10 children older than 2 1/2 years and younger than 6 years
- Childcare program that is longer than 4 hours each day
- children must attend a childcare that has volunteered to participate in the study
- Child must be older than 2 1/2 years and younger than 6 years of age
Key exclusion criteria (8 listed)
- Located outside Metro Vancouver region
- Facilities caring only for children under 2 1/2 years old or older than 6 years
- Family or in-home multi-age childcare
- Do not care or supervise 2 ½ to 6 years old children
- Work less than 3 full days per week
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Appetite to Play +In 2017 the province of BC enacted a provincial standard for physical activity, formally titled the Director of Licensing Standard of Practice - Active Play (Active Play Standards) that licensed childcare centers are required to adhere to. Along with this, a provincial capacity-building intervention (Appetite to Play) was released to provide training and education to early years providers working in the province and support the implementation of the Active Play Standards. The intervention, Appetite to Play +, will provide advanced training to early year educators on the Appetite to Play activities and resources. The intervention will include workshops and training on physical literacy, fundamental movement skills, and creating a supportive environment to sustain Active Play practices. As part of the intervention, managers will also be provided with resources to aid them with the integration of Active Play into their curriculums and schedules. | Behavioural | Intervention group, Standard of care waitlist control |
Primary outcome
Change in practices related to active play (AP) and fundamental movement skills (FMS)
Time frame: Two time points -baseline and 3-month post intervention
Change in AP and FMS practices will examine child engagement in AP and FMS activities at the facility (e.g., time spent in AP, FMS, and outdoor activities, adherence to best practices). Assessment through observed practices using the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation (EPAO) tool, and through self-reported practices based on questions developed by the Early Years Survey and the EPAO as a Self-Report instrument (EPAO-SR).
Fundamental movement skills (child outcomes)
Time frame: Two time points -baseline and 3-month post intervention
Children's FMS will be assessed with the validated Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD-3 a norm-referenced tool for assessing 13 gross motor skills). The measure takes 15-20 min per child to administer and provides standardized and percentile composite scores for the locomotor, object control, and gross motor quotient (GMQ) composites.
2 secondary outcomes
Characteristics of childcare settings
Time frame: Three time points -baseline and 3-month, and 6-month post intervention
Characteristics of providers
Time frame: Three time points -baseline and 3-month, and 6-month post intervention
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 16 Apr 2025.
- Derived from this study: PubMed 40794716Masse LC, Wright C, Buckler EJ, De-Jongh Gonzalez O, Wolfenden L, Faulkner G, Carson V, Temple V, Brussoni M, Fakih S, Sauve K, Edache I, Naylor PJ. Facility-level implementation strategies in early childhood education and care to enhance adherence to a provincial physical activity standard: Protocol for the Good Start Matters ATP+ randomised controlled trial. PLoS One. 2025 Aug 12;20(8):e0329276. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0329276. eCollection 2025.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Louise C Masse, PhD principal investigator
University of British Columbia
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Appetite to Play + in people with Physical Inactivity and Motor Activity, run by University of British Columbia at 1 site in Canada.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 9 inclusion and 8 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 16 Apr 2025. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in Canada. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Louise C Masse, PhD (604-875-2000 ext. 5563, lmasse@bcchr.ubc.ca), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Change in practices related to active play (AP) and fundamental movement skills (FMS) (time frame: Two time points -baseline and 3-month post intervention). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT05669378, which also lists 1 linked publication.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 16 Apr 2025.